But perhaps the flail snail has some historical legitimacy? Apparently, as this Vox video explains, Medieval illuminated texts often included pictures of knights fighting snails in their margins...
AKRATIC WIZARDRY: A blog wherein I scribble about role-playing games (Mythras, Against the Darkmaster, Dungeons & Dragons [esp. old school], Swords & Wizardry, Into the Unknown, Middle-earth Role-playing, Lord of the Rings Role-playing, Adventures in Middle-Earth, Crypts & Things, Call of Cthulhu, etc.) and RPG settings (Middle-earth, Cthulhu Mythos, Greyhawk, Lyonesse, Ukrasia, etc.). I also write about fantasy and science-fiction films, novels, art, TV shows, and the like.
04 May 2017
The True Origin of the Flail Snail?
But perhaps the flail snail has some historical legitimacy? Apparently, as this Vox video explains, Medieval illuminated texts often included pictures of knights fighting snails in their margins...
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About Me
- Akrasia
- I'm a Canadian political philosopher who lives primarily in Toronto but teaches in Milwaukee (sometimes in person, sometimes online).
Great post.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
Deletei assumed they were from that era where dnd and RQ overlapped
ReplyDeleteowlbear = jack o bear
flail snail = dragonsnail
Except that at least in the case of the Owlbear and the Jack-o-Bear there is little resemblance between the two creatures. The owlbear, a fusion of bear and owl, derives from a cheap plastic toy. The jack-o-bear is a chaos creature with the body of a bear and a pumpkin like head.
ReplyDeleteSimilarly dragonsnails and flail snails are quite different creatures, the former being a giant snail with the head(s) of a dragon.
Many of the Fiend Folio monsters were fan created stats for monsters that first appeared as miniatures. I don't know if the flail snail was one of these.
There is a picture labeled a "bugbear" in the Original D&D books with a shaggy body and jack-o'-lantern head. I always assumed that the jack-o-bear was based on that.
ReplyDelete